With the auction business slowing down and the costs of production rising, it isn't an easy time to be a Thoroughbred breeder. Horsemen who profited from rallying bloodstock prices for much of the 1990s are being forced to reevaluate the financial health of their operations and revise economic strategies. The situation is particularly difficult for farm owners who derive most of their income from horses that fit into the middle and lower levels of the market.